Pregnant Frankie Sandford Opts For Hair Extensions

She's one fifth of girl group The Saturdays, and is known for her crop of dark hair worn in her signature short cut. However Frankie Sandford, who is currently expecting her first child with fiancé Wayne Bridge, has opted for extensions and a new, longer style.

It's interesting that Frankie decided to go for extensions at this moment in time, due to the fact that during pregnancy, women generally find that their hair becomes thicker. The reason behind this is that the hormonal changes going on inside the body during pregnancy increase the amount of time that hair remains in the growth stage of its cycle.

Thicker Hair During Pregnancy?

The growth stage usually lasts between 2-8 years, before hair enters the resting phase (which lasts around three months) before shedding. However, because of the longer growth stage, under 50 hairs a day are shed during pregnancy (as supposed to the usual 100), meaning that many women enjoy denser hair and potentially feel the need for hair extensions less.

However, once Frankie has given birth, she may find that she notices a greater degree of shedding, due to losing the extra hair retained during her pregnancy. This women's hair loss process is known as postpartum alopecia, and occurs in general 2-4 months after giving birth.

So, if Frankie is reaching for the hair extensions now, there's every chance that she might feel compelled to do so again when the postpartum hair loss occurs. However, extensions can actually cause further hair loss due to traction alopecia, so the star may want to consider not using them, or at least giving her hair a rest from them regularly.

Risking Extensions

The reason why hair extensions (and weaves or other hair attachments) can cause damage to hair is due to the fact that they put pressure onto the hairs to which they are attached, causing damage to the follicle that can result in hair thinning out in those areas.

A hair loss treatment plan that includes extra strength minoxidil cream has proven to be highly effective for Belgravia patients treating their traction alopecia. Minoxidil is licensed by the MHRA and approved by the FDA as a proven hair loss medication, and has regrown thinning hair for thousands of female patients at Belgravia experiencing a variety of different types of hair loss including the common female pattern hair loss.

Whilst postpartum hair loss should usually fix itself six months after pregnancy, continued shedding means that a different kind of hair loss could be occurring. A hair loss specialist would be able to advise you on what this might be, and blood tests can eliminate causes such as a nutritional deficiency that can lead to the condition diffuse thinning.